Boultham Mere Nature Reserve

credit: geograph.org.uk

You can get in touch with the Boultham Mere Nature Reserve by calling 01507 526667. The Boultham Mere Nature Reserve is a protected birdwatching wetland not far from the city centre although it is described as a quiet and secluded sanctuary.

About the Boultham Mere Nature Reserve

The Boultham Mere Nature Reserve is a birdwatching nature reserve just outside the city centre of Lincoln, it is protected by the Lincolnshire wildlife trust and it is a wetland with large beautiful lakes and miles of beds of reed and sedge as well as emergent vegetation (as described on the Lincolnshire wildlife trust website). There are a few walking trails in the reserve, over the railway track, over the vast woodland and down to the banks of the reserve. The reserve was originally excavated for the railway but it has since grown into a beautiful reserve full of wildlife. There are fully matured trees and shrubs including willow and sallow and you can spot many species of birds during the wintertime.

Species in Area

Most of the birds you will be able to see during the winter time are Goldeneye, teal, shoveler and goosander. There are also up to 20 pairs of breeding reed and sedge warblers in the reserve, with two pairs of great crested grebes and three pairs of little grebes Once you are near the lakes (referred to as ‘drain’ on the reserve website) you will be able to see 12 species of dragonflies and damselflies that are regular visitors to the lakes all year round, during the summer months you’ll be able to see many butterflies including larger skipper, orange tip and ringlet. You will also be able to see some flowering plants such as the water-violet and greater spearwort. You may also be able to catch kingfisher and common tern who breed on the reserve too.

Accessibility

The reserve is open at all time and the best times to visit are during the winter months but you can spot a large amount of wildlife all year round from January to December. Be aware that the reserve is rather large (19 hectares to be exact, which is around 46 acres), the closed car park is off Tritton road and there are no wheelchair accessibility features. No dogs are permitted onto the reserve as they could disrupt the natural bird wildlife. There are walking trails to follow and keep you from getting lost, if you are not familiar with the land we would not recommend going off the trails. There are a few bird hides for you to watch the wildlife in comfortably without disrupting it.

Contacting the Boultham Mere Nature Reserve

There are a few reasons you may want to contact the reserve whether you have seen something that is concerning you at the reserve, you would like to donate to the reserve or you would like to know if they need any volunteers at the reserve. You can contact the reserve in a few ways the easiest is through a phone call, you can dial 01507 526667to speak to a member of their team. If you would prefer to email the nature reserve you can do so by sending a message toinfo@lincstrust.co.uk. They also have a Twitter account, a Facebook page and a Flickr account that they can be contacted through.